Let Me Be With You
by Chengxiao
Summary: What if Saeyoung isn't the only person who could remember every route? What if Saeran, being his twin, also possesses the same ability? And what if Saeyoung was the one to press reset? MC struggles as her story was reset without her consent, to find out what really happened, and to win the love of Saeyoung once again. But this time, it will be her to save the day.
1. The Story Begins

Disclaimer: I don't own the story or the characters.

I named the MC Hyorin since I wanted all my characters to have a name and Hyorin is a nice Korean name ^^

Let Me Be With You

Chapter 1. The Story Begins.

 **Prologue**

"YOU!" Saeran's eyes were wild and filled with anger, like a mad dog. "It had been you all along. Without you, none of this would have happened!"  
Release me, Saeran cried silently. Release me from this hell, where I had to pursue her time and time again. Time after time I had pursued her as she repeatedly changed her boyfriends, always within the RFA. Time after time I had sent her those messages to lure her to the savior's old apartment. She never even questioned it, the dimwitted woman. Who is even stupid enough to follow the directions of a stranger on a messaging app. But no more. Now that both of them were in my hands, I could finish this and end my miserable existence once and for all, Saeran thought and his mouth curved into a smile.  
Saeran lifted his arm and took aim. Saeyoung, in a desperate attempt, reached out and tried to steer the aim of the gun.  
Just a second too late, Saeran was still smiling. The triggered had already been pressed.  
Bang.  
The sound rang through the air, crisp and clear like the sound of a bell. Time stood still for a moment, as Hyorin watched the bullet escaping the gun. But time doesn't stand still for anyone. Before she knew it, Hyorin felt the force of the small bullet entering her forehead, piercing through the skin, drilling a small hole in her skull before finally entering her brain.  
Ah, I guess can't reset this time now, Hyorin thought as she stumbled backwards and the world darkened around her.  
"I'm sorry, I guess this is finally the end for us. For me," she looked at Saeyoung one last time as he broke out of the disciples' restraints and ran towards her.  
Goodbye, Saeyoung. I love you, Hyorin thought, and everything went black.

 **Day 20**

 **Saeyoung**

I didn't know how I got out of Mint Eye's building after Saeran shot Hyorin. I didn't know how I managed to snatch her phone out of Saeran's hand, escaped Mint Eye and drove myself to Rika's apartment either. Everything seemed like a blur. I vaguely remembered some beefy guys and Jumin breaking in. But truthfully, the world had stopped turning ever since I watched Hyorin falling to the ground, unable to do anything about it.  
This was never supposed to happen. This was not supposed to happen. Why did Saeran do this? What had Hyorin done to him? They had only met twice and spoke briefly. Nothing Hyorin said or did could have guaranteed this kind of behavior.  
But of course, none of that mattered now. Hyorin was gone. Unlike Rika, who had never been gone. Thinking about that woman almost made me want to go on a rampage. Because of her, I would now have to live for an eternity alone, never seeing Hyorin again, never watching her quiet face as she was falling asleep again, never embracing that tiny figure in my arms, and most of all, never hearing her cheerful voice again.  
The thought of it was so painful I wanted to kill myself.  
But it didn't have to be this way.  
I laughed manically. The plan was almost crazy. I didn't know what would happen now that Hyorin was not in this world anymore, so long after the party. I thought we were getting our happy ending. I thought it was finally my turn, for once in my life, to get my happy ending.  
There were only so many things I could control.  
But this, I can control, I mumbled to myself as I erased lines of code and typed down new ones.  
The agency could be here any minute. They probably tracked the GPS on her phone and knew that I was at Rika's apartment. I must hurry. There was no time.  
I needed to make it as difficult as possible for her to be with me again. No, dificult was not enough. It must be impossible.  
For Hyorin to live, she must not be with me.  
She could never be with me.  
I could live for an eternity, in a time loop without her love, as long as she was normal, alive and well. A tear escaped my eye, as I remembered saying the exact same thing to her, when I used to push her away despite all her best efforts at winning me over.  
You were weak Luciel. You were weak. Stupid. Greedy. You gave in to her and now you're falling from heaven straight to hell. It would have been enough for you to exist besides her, being in the same world as her. But you weren't satisfied. You wanted more, you wanted too much.  
And now you're paying the price.  
At times like this, I really wished I was as fast as Flash, the DC superhero. So that I could type with superhuman speed and be done with it. My keyboard and my laptop probably won't be able to keep up with it, and will give out soon, but I should have enough time to finish editing the code.  
"Luciel Choi! Open the door and relinquish yourself!" I heard Vanderwood's voice outside the door. Goddamn it. I couldn't believe how fast they were. But I didn't think that Vanderwood would have betrayed me either. "I'm sorry buddy, but the agency gave me no choice. We're giving you 10 seconds to open the door or we will break in. If you willingly come out maybe I can negotiate for your life."  
My life? I laughed. It's meaningless. My life was meaningless now that Hyorin was not in it anymore. Hyorin was gone, and Saeran was on the run again. Without Hyorin by my side, I might as well be dead. Why Vanderwood thought that threat would work was beyond my imagination.  
"10...9...8..."  
The code was not finished yet, and I wasn't able to block off every single route to my profile, but this was as difficult as I could make it. I pressed save and closed the application. Hopefully she would give up trying after a while and settle down with Jumin. Or Yoosung. Even better, Zen. Zen always cared about her no matter what. Any of them would make her happy, unlike me. I pulled out Hyorin's phone. She had her fingerprint as her passcode, but I quickly entered my birthday and the phone unlocked.  
"7...6...5..."  
I pulled up the app and entered her credentials. Hurry up, I cursed under my breath. What is taking you so long? I had invested the best internet into this apartment, and now it was failing me.  
"4..3...2..."  
The app finished loading. I scrambled through the interface and found the settings with my shaky fingers.  
"1...0..."  
The door swung open by force. I pressed the reset button as the special security system got triggered. In a flash, everything went up in flame. The apartment. The agency. RFA's documents. Mint Eye's blueprints. Rika's personal files. Me.  
I will see you again Hyorin, I thought as my consciousness slipped away. In another lifetime.

 **Day 1.**

 **Hyorin**

"Sev...Saeyoung," I sleepily reached out to my left, "Saeyoung, I want cuddles."  
Empty. My fingertips felt the empty cold space that was supposed to be occupied by Saeyoung's soft curly hair.  
My eyes shot open and I looked around.  
Shit.  
Why am I here again?  
I was sleeping on the bed in my old room. My phone was on the nightstand as usual, the sleeping app analyzing my sleep pattern.  
Shit shit shit. I cursed out loudly. What the fuck. What the actual fuck.  
Where did I fail? I searched my memory for an aswer. I thought I got the happy ending. I must have gotten the happy ending. We listened to the party being broadcasted on the radio together! The party had been a huge success. I invited 21 people! What the fuck happened.  
I opened up the messaging app and frantically entered my credentials.  
As soon as I looked up the saved data, I knew that something was off. There was no saved data. I always saved after the other guys, since I was so afraid of making mistakes and wanted an easy way out. But with Saeyoung, it was different. I didn't have to try to be a different person. I just went with my instinct. For some reasons I didn't feel the need to ponder over my answers and thought about what they'd like to hear the most. He had liked everything I said. My jokes, my cheers, my concerns, my questions, my persistent pestering. It was love, true love. We were meant to be together.  
And now I was back at square one.  
What the fuck happened last time? I searched my memories for an answer. We were listening to the party being broadcasted, Saeyoung and I were on the way to track Saeran. I got 21 guests, and Jumin was talking about the direction of the RFA's developments. We stopped in front of a building deep in the mountain. A building painted in white and teal. No, not teal. Mint.  
My head suddenly hurt. Mint. Mint eye. Saeran.  
That was everything I could remember. I did not remember pressing reset. I did not want to press reset. I'm not a sadist. Saeyoung told me everything. How he knew everything, remembered everything. How he was stuck watching me seducing guys after guys in the RFA, even becoming Jaehee's best friend and partner in crime. How he had been consumed with sadness, every time the fifth day rolled around and he had seen that he was once again not chosen. How happy he was whenever he saw me entering the chatroom for the first time, once again, hoping that maybe, maybe this one time I would chose him over his more normal friends. And how he was afraid of me pressing reset. Oh was he afraid. For the first few days I had to do everything I could to convince him to sleep, for he feared that if he had fallen asleep, I would have pressed reset and left him.  
If I didn't press reset, then who did?  
Was it...I was almost too afraid to think about it...No, it can't be.  
Was it him?  
Did Saeyoung press reset?  
He was the only one to know the true power of the app in my phone. How it could stop, speed up and turn back time. He was the only one who knew the passcode to my phone. I changed the passcode to his birthday right after the day he showed up at my front door, his hazel eyes all hurt and wide like a puppy's for reasons unknown to me back then.  
Why did he press reset, I pondered.  
Did he...not love me anymore?  
I thought we were happy. We were chasing after Saeran, and our lives were constantly under threat, but we were, or at least I was, happier than I had ever been, safe and sound with anyone else.  
Why did he do it?  
Tears started flowing from my eyes. It had only been 5 minutes since I woke up and I had already missed him so much. It quickly became unbearable without him by my side, knowing that I had lost him.  
Was this how Saeyoung had felt every day of his life?  
I wiped the tears from my eyes. No, this was not the time to get sentimental. Nothing would come of me crying. I needed to played the game again. I needed to talk to RFA again. Then maybe I would have a clue as to why this had happened to me. Saeyoung always remembered. He must have remembered us. I would try to get to him again, and he would show up on my door again, and we would be able to talk without the app, and this misunderstanding could be resolved.  
If he had rejected me, I would want to hear it straight from him. Not like this. I clicked on the icon containing his and Jumin's faces.  
"Complete all the routes in Casual Story and pay 80 hourglass to unlock Deep Story", the app coldly informed me.  
What?  
I could not believe my eyes. This had never been a problem.  
Okay, okay. I'd only have to rush through Zen, Yoosung and Jaehee, pay 80 hourglass, then I could be with Seven. Right? Right? The app was being really weird right now, but I could not afford to waste any moment.  
For now, let's buy some time, literally, and rush through their stories. Sorry guys, I have nothing against you, really. But my heart belonged to Saeyoung.  
"What!", I yelled out, once again. What was this nonsense. There was no option to purchase more hourglasses. There was no way for me to cheat and speed up time. I could only earn it through randomly choosing the right answers.  
Are you telling me, that I would have to painstakingly go through a month and a half before I could even see Saeyoung in person. Would I even be able to accumulate that many hourglasses by the time I finished?  
As soon as the thought entered my head, I almost wanted to hit myself for even thinking it out loud. So what, if I had to wait a month and a half. Think about what Saeyoung had gone through, patiently waiting for me. Having his heart broken into pieces over and over again. It was time for me to return the courtesy. I hadn't realized it at the time, but it had always been him to save me every single time. He was always there reliably, fixing mistakes while maintaining his work for the agency, while I took him for granted.  
Dear God, I found myself silently praying although I had always been an atheist. If you really exist, and you're really listening, please grant me this wish. Just let me see Saeyoung again. I don't care what it takes. If I had to relive this life over and over again, so be it. I would live this life a thousand times, just to see his face and his smile. Just to be with him.

Now, let the game begin, I whispered as the game started to load and Saeran sent me the first message.

End Chapter 1.


	2. Hello, Goodbye

Author's note: Thank you guys so much for the encouragement! I'm sorry for taking such a long time to write this chapter.

This chapter will have a song and I recommend listening to it once it comes up ^^ here's the youtube link /watch?v=TW2IBVctARE

If you enjoy this story, please leave me some reviews, I'd love to know what you guys think!

Let Me Be With You

Chapter 2. Hello, Goodbye

 **Day 1.**

 **Hyorin**

I walked up the stairs leading up to Rika's apartment. It took me nearly 30 minutes to figure out where it was. The annoying thing about this world, this universe, this system, whatever you call it, is that every single time I reset, everything became different. Streets were named differently, arranged differently, houses and buildings numbered differently. It would have been convenient for the world to stay the same, but the world didn't want to make it easy for me.

I awaited Saeran to give me the passcode to the apartment. The passcode changed every single time too. It was a problem at first for me, since I would always re-enter the old password. However, after awhile I made sure to have the passcode written down in my phone.

"Th..a..nk...y.o...u..," the messages faded out.

"Yeah right," I thought to myself, "See you soon Saeran. We've got a lot of business to take care of."

I took a deep breath and logged into the chatroom. I had thought that I would never have to do this again, and yet here I was. Yoosung complaining about failing his midterms. Zen and Jumin bickering. It felt like home, not in a good way.

It took them a while to realize that I was there, as usual.

"Hello..," I timidly spoke up.

"Gahhhhh it's talking!", Yoosung screamed.

"It? That's a rude thing to say about your ex-girlfriend Yoosung," I almost wanted to snap back, but there were only limited things I could say.

That's right, I reminded myself, the fun only began once I met them in person.

Besides, Yoosung would have no memories of me as his girlfriend. Not that I was complaining about it.

"Who is it?" Jumin asked calmly.

Saeyoung was looking up my IP address. It was hard to determine whether he remembered about us, or he was just playing along with the script. There was the possibility that the system as I knew it was changed completely. After all, the app had displayed some very odd behavior. It was...as if it did not want me to progress faster. The app used to amaze me with its unlimited power. It could stop, rewind and fast forward time, real time, like nobody's business, given that I paid a small sum of money. When things went sour, I could reset everything and went back to day one. I felt like God as long as I still had the app on my phone. I truly was Homura, the time witch from Madoka, maybe even more powerful. But now, I could only progress as fast as everyone else. It bothered me that the system had changed, and that nothing seemed to make sense.

However, if the system really changed that much, there was a possibility that Saeyoung's memories were reset like everyone else' and he could not remember the time when we were together.

My head hurt thinking about that possibility. Not just because of how hard it was for Saeyoung to open up to me, but to think that everything we went through together had vanished into thin air. The first time he showed up at my door. The awkward days we spent together in that room that I cherished so much. The night he came to my bed and spilled out his heart content to me, thinking that I was asleep (I wasn't, thankfully since that speech kept me going). Our first kiss.

Serve you right Hyorin, for all those times you pressed reset on Zen, Yoosung, Jaehee and Jumin.

The group kept on bickering as I patiently waited for them. The funny thing was, everyone thought that RFA was dysfunctional in some way ever since Rika passed away. Zen openly told me how he didn't like any guy in RFA except for Yoosung, Jaehee always felt awkward among them, everyone thought Jumin only cared about Elizabeth 3rd, so on and so on. But for me, an outsider, it was always obvious how tightknit they were. At times it became too much, as it was obvious that some of them were reliving Rika through me, thinking that somehow things could go back to when Rika was alive.

I never even liked Rika.

"So Hyorin, do you want to join RFA?"

I smiled. Did I even have a choice?

"Alright it sounds fun. I'll give it a go."

 **Saeyoung**

The experiment had been a great success. I was worried that resetting would not work, since Hyorin was shot beforehand. My hands trembled when I saw the familiar notification "Username Hyorin has entered the chatroom". So many things crossed through my mind. Was she okay? Did she remember Saeran and the church? Did she remember...us? That would make things very hard.

"Hey Luciel, one last thing," V said over the phone. "Verify her number and give her a call, won't you? Then inform the other members too."

I sighed. "I've got her number, it's the right one. I don't need to make a call."

"We still need to verify that this is the correct number. Just give her a welcoming call and be nice to her Luciel."

V, I mumbled under my breath, I really fucking hate you sometimes.

"Rrrrr,rrrr"

"Hello?"

"Your bank account has been used for a fun prank," I put on my best smile, hoping that she could feel it through my voice. "Were you aware of this? I have to confirm your cell phone number for your identity so please follow the instructions."

"Saeyoung?"

Relax, Luciel. You knew this was going to happen, I told myself. I didn't exactly know, I really was hoping that she would forget this time since it wasn't her who pressed reset. But it seemed like her memory was intact.

Did she remember the gunshot, I wonder. In movies where someone had died and gone to heaven, or chose to remain as ghosts on earth, they always have a problem remembering circumstances surrounding their deaths. I wonder if that was the case for her.

"Dear gullible customer, I am not aware of this "Saeyoung" person you speak of. However, in order to verify your identity, please go ahead and say 'Honey, I love you'," I said in a comical voice.

"Saeyoung, I love you."

My heart skipped a beat hearing her gentle voice say my name for the second time. I wanted desperately to reach out to her, to tell her that I loved her back. In a way, I was happy to see that she still remembered us. I was happy to know that I mattered to her.

"Ahhh, very cute. Now please tell me your phone number."

"Saeyoung, do you not remember me?"

"This is Hyorin, right? You just joined RFA this morning because someone led you to Rika's apartment, correct? I don't know who this Saeyoung guy is, but he must be so lucky to have a cute girl worry about him like this."

"Listen Saeyoung, I don't know what happened. I...I swear I didn't press reset. I would never, ever do anything like that to you," her breath was quick and her voice dampened. "Please believe me. Look, can you meet me at Rika's apartment? I'll explain everything to you."

"Username Hyorin, you're quite the prankster yourself," I laughed. "You've almost got me there. I see I've finally found my match in RFA. I look forward to joining forces with you in the chatroom."

"I see..." her voice deflated like a balloon. "...I guess I was wrong to assume. So you really don't remember me, do you?"

"What are you talking about? I'm calling because I needed to verify your number. I'm sure that I remember you from this morning quite well."

"..."

"I see that this is the correct number. I'll go ahead and tell the other members so that they can call you too, okay?

"..."

"Please take good care of the RFA, okay? Looking forward to it! Then, bye bye!"

I turned off the phone and collapsed into my seat. It seemed like it would take more than a bag of chips and soda for me to recover from this conversation. I hated hearing her cry. I hated hurting her. I hated being a jerk to her again, after what I already put her through. But I had no other choice. From now on, I told myself, I would abstain from calling, or receiving calls from her.

 **Day 11 - Jaehee's route**

 **Hyorin**

Jaehee, having quit her job at Jumin's company, had lost the glasses, looking more vibrant than ever. I smiled sadly when she greeted me, knowing that in the life I would ultimately end up in, she would still be working for Jumin and his absurd projects.

It had been a month since the incident happened and my life with Saeyoung was brutally ripped away from my hands. I had played my part perfectly, dutifully dating Zen and Yoosung, and befriending Jaehee in order to unlock the pathway to Saeyoung. I looked around the ballroom. Saeyoung, for some reasons unknown, had bailed out of the two previous parties. I was disappointed of course, since the party was the only occasion I was looking forward to. It had been a month since I last saw his face, and I still missed him so much. My heart jumped every time I saw his name in the chatroom. On the rare occasions that he texted and called me, usually about my security and the bomb in the apartment, I could hardly contain my excitement. Of course, I still had to act discreetly, since I was technically dating Zen or Yoosung at the time.

Now that I was not in love with either of them anymore, it had become obvious just how much Saeyoung cared. From before, I was totally engulfed with Zen's scandal involving Echo Girl, or Yoosung's concern with Rika. I could not see what an important role Saeyoung played in the organization. Whenever anything went wrong, it had always fallen on him to fix the mistake and restored the order. Restoring the order, I smiled, Defender of Justice, Seven O Seven. He had work with the agency, and I still remembered how dangerous and high stake his job was. Still, he'd rather drop everything to come fix RFA's security breach before finishing work at the agency. And he was always, always so concerned about my security, well everyone's security actually. He didn't need to care, it's not like he was being paid by Jumin to do this. All of RFA relied on him so much, yet they never appreciated him enough.

"Hyorin! Oh my god it's really you!" Yoosung jumped up and down excitedly upon seeing my face. "Come here and meet Seven."

"Sa...Seven is here?" I was surprised. I thought he was just gonna bail this time. Of course, no one remembered him bailing but me.

"Yeah, of course, where else would he be? Come." Yoosung pulled my hand.

"Yeah, if only you knew."

"Seven!" Yoosung yelled out. "It's Hyorin! In the flesh! Look how pretty she is."

I held my breath as the young man with the red hair turned around. It sounded like a cheesy drama, but time really seemed to stand still at that moment. My heart was practically jumping out of my chest cavity, my palms got all sweaty, and I could hardly open my mouth to say hello.

For some reasons, this feeling of the world standing still felt familiar to me. Like I had experience this somewhere before. But because I had lived so many lives, the memories of the different worlds started to blur into each other. Just the other day, I nonchalantly asked Zen how his brother was doing through the phone call.

"Hiya Hyorin," he smiled, and his hazel eyes were filled with warmth and sunshine. I tried to wipe off the beads of sweat that were forming on my upper lips, but I was afraid of smearing my lipstick and looking like an idiot in front of him. I had chosen to wear a red lip today, being the idiot that I was. "Glad to see you here."

After all this time, I was still so in love with him it was ridiculous. Admittedly, dating Zen and Yoosung was fun. I was happy to be back to the days when everyone trusted V and had impeccable memories of Rika. It was relieving to see Yoosung become motivated and accomplished again, after letting go of his obsession with Rika. With Zen, I got to relive my life with him before he became really famous. I had him all to myself for a few days, and I could see how Zen would make any girl so happy. But I already knew that he wouldn't make me happy. He had not then, and would not now.

"I'm so glad you came," I smiled. "I was really looking forward to seeing you."

"Who, me? You wanted to see me? Hyorin that's too cute. You can't say things like that to guys okay," he laughed and held out his hand. "Don't you know how fragile our hearts are?"

Our eyes locked for a moment as we shook hands. I looked deep into his eyes, camouflaged behind the colorful pair of glasses, for an answer. So many questions, so many hidden answers. Did he still love me? Did he still retain his special ability to remember? How was he feeling right now? What would become of us in the future?

"I know how fragile your heart is," I winked.

He withdrew his hand and cleared his throat. My heart sank. So I guess he had no feelings for me. I wanted to punch myself, feelings a million ways of embarrassment. This was a different world now, I told myself. Just because he had fallen for you before, didn't mean that he would again. As far as I knew, everything had changed in this universe.

"The party is a great success. You did a goob job Hyorin," Saeyoung smiled. "But next time, please don't download strange apps and follow directions of strangers okay? That is so dangerous."

I almost teared up at the worriness in his voice. "Okay, don't worry. We're all safe now, right?"

"Hyorin," Jumin appeared in front of my eyes. "I needed to talk to you. It's very urgent."

"Uhm," I stuttered, as Saeyoung stepped back, looking uncomfortable. "Sure."

"In private,"

Saeyoung waved goodbye and turned around, disappeared in the sea of people.

"What is it Jumin?" I tapped my foot.

"Uhm, so this is pretty awkward. I needed your advice. We all see how much of an impact you have on Jaehee..."

"She just needed someone to listen to her you know," I crossed my arms. "You were pretty harsh on her."

"I don't want to talk about that right now."

"Okay, that's fair. I won't start a fight with you then."

"Thank you," he looked more relieved now. "So I have this friend. And I think he's very confused and hurt, and he seems to be leading himself towards this really dark path. I really want to help him, but I don't know how."

"Is it V?" I blurted out before I could stop myself.

"How did you know?" Jumin was surprised.

"I don't know, a woman's instinct?" I laughed. "You don't have many friends Jumin. It's pretty easy to figure out who you're talking about."

"That's true."

I sighed. The reason why V was like this.

A vision came into my head. V was standing in the door. Saeran called out to him. Saeyoung was confused and looked hurt. And we were led away to a car.

"Hyorin? Hyorin?" Jumin called out to me.

"I'm sorry, I was spacing out," I shook my head.

What was that? I wondered. Was that a memory? How come I never remembered this until now? Did I suffer from amnesia? "I think, I know why V is like this." I slowly said.

"Do you really? How do you know?"

"I don't know how either," I sighed. "But if you really want to help V, I'd be happy to help."

"Thank you so much," Jumin exhaled. "I was afraid you were going to turn me down because of what happened with Jaehee."

"As long as you don't lock me up again, I'm all in."

"What?" His eyebrows burrowed in confusion.

"It's nothing haha. I was making a joke."

At times like this, knowledge about your ex boyfriend really helps, I thought as I watched Jumin's confused face.

"Oh my god, is that a piano?" I gasped as I saw the black shiny piano in a corner near the stage, in order to divert the situation.

"Yes it is," Jumin fixed his tie. "I hired a pianist to perform today but I don't know where he is right now."

"Hyorin," Zen sneaked up behind us. "Do you play the piano?"

"Uhm," I laughed nervously. "Just a little bit. I used to be really into it. My old house had a small piano where I practiced, but it's been a while."

"Why don't you play something for us?" Yoosung asked.

"Uhm, no it's okay," I shook my head. "I only remember this one really cheesy song, and then I'd have to sing too."

"That's even better! Hyorin I really want to hear you sing,"

"No!" I freaked out. "I get stage fright! I'm really scared."

"Just a small performance won't hurt, right Jumin?"

"Well..." Jumin said hesistantly. "I'd like for my guests to be entertained right now, since that pianist is nowhere to be found."

"No way in hell guys. Zen why don't you provide us with entertainment?"

"I can't do that," Zen winked, and I could hear the faint cry of his fan club in the distance. "I can't steal the spotlight of the party like this."

"Attention everyone," Jaehee suddenly appeared on stage. "Thank you all so much for coming here today. I would like you to meet the lady to made this happen. Come on stage Hyorin."

My face reddened. No matter how many times I have done this, it was still embarrassing for me to stand up on the stage. Especially when most of the speakers in the past had wanted to perform some kind of grandeur action, professing their love to me for the world to see.

'Hi eveyone," I smiled nervously. "Thank you so much for coming here today. I got a lot of help from members of the RFA, so don't believe Jaehee when she said this was all me."

Jaehee slapped my back discreetly.

"This party was made possible by the participation of everyone here. So in a way, you all made this happen, and I'm so happy to see so many people here. Thank you all so much and enjoy the party."

"And for entertainment, we would like to introduce, yours truly, Miss Hyorin as the opening act for tonight."

I was halfway down the stage, lifting my dress when I heard Jaehee's announcement. I looked up on stage in disbelief while she winked at me. Yoosung and Zen clapped passionately while whistling to me.

Ha. Ha Ha Ha. This is funny guys, I gave Jaehee a panicked look, but she just brushed past me.

You guys are so dead, I shot them the dirtiest look that I could manage. When the party is done, I'm going to skin all four of you.

"I'm going to kill all of you," I grunted as Jaehee came down from the stage to adjust the mic onto the stand on top of the piano. "I am so going to kill every single person in RFA. Except for Luciel."

"Oh, is that so?" Jaehee smiled. "Why single out Luciel as the sole survivor?"

"Because he didn't participate in this ridiculous conspiracy against me," I gritted my teeth.

"And that's where you are wrong...Anyway, ladies and gentlemen's," Jaehee announced. "Miss Hyorin."

"Hello again," I laughed nervously. "Unfortunately our pianist was a bit late, so I was filled in as the opening act."

Silence. Complete silence. This was so unprofessional. Why didn't Jumin step in and stop this? I wiped the sweaty palms on my dress.

"Has anyone here seen the drama 'My Love from Another Star'?" I asked nervously.

Half the guests laughed, and some people raised their hands.

"That's good, that's more than I expected," I laughed awkwardly again. "I'm sorry that I don't have very sophisticated taste haha. Anyway, I will be performing this song from the TV show, and it is called Hello, Goodbye."

I darted my eyes around the huge ballroom and saw Saeyoung leaning on a column, standing by himself. He smiled at me encouragingly and waved at me. His red hair was as unruly as ever, but something about the sight of him in a white suit and ochre-colored tie really drew my eyes in. He was so handsome, I dare say even more than Zen was. Zen was beautiful, but Saeyoung's face had characteristics.

I cleared my throat. Fuck it. After all, after today I was going to reset the app before choosing the pathway to Saeyoung anyway. Let's mess things up. Might as well have a little fun along the way.

"I want to dedicate this song to a certain someone, to whom I am deeply grateful to and care about very much. You don't know this person, but he's someone that is very important to RFA, the most important person in RFA in fact," I inhaled deeply. "We used to have a lot of fun together, and I don't think he still remembers, but I want to cherish him anyway. Thank you Luciel Choi, for making this possible."

Yoosung's jaw dropped as Zen stumbled backwards. Jumin shifted ever so slightly in his seat and loosened his tie. I closed my eyes and started playing the first few notes.

 _You came to me by coincidence and embraced me_  
 _And as we blankly stared at each other, you said goodbye._  
 _You only passed through in my dreams_  
 _But now you're in front of me_

I opened my eyes and searched the crowd for Saeyoung. He was still leaning on the column, his facial expression a mixture of surprise and something else I couldn't discern. Was he surprised? Was he pleased? Did this trigger any memory in him, of the time when we were together?

 _Love has come_  
 _But you say you're leaving_  
 _I waited for you_  
 _But you say I can't see you anymore_  
 _Always like a fool_  
 _The flowing tears tell me_  
 _Goodbye now, goodbye_  
 _Hello Hello_  
 _Hello Hello Hello_

Wow, this was ridiculous, I thought to myself. The lyrics of this cheesy song, and this situation were both so ridiculous. Somehow, through some cruel twist of fate, we had become strangers again. It hurt me so much every day, no matter how hard I wanted to fight it. I missed his breathing by my side. I missed holding onto him when I was sleeping, feeling his heartbeat through his chest. I missed seeing his face first thing in the morning, comforting him from a bad dream. Why did it have to be this way? Who did this to us? I almost wanted to scream.

 _When we meet again,_  
 _I'll be the first to say I'm alright, hello_  
 _Will I see you at least in my dreams?_  
 _I close my eyes_

It's okay, I told myself. You'd press reset and see him again. You'd get to him again. You'd make him yours again.

But I still missed him so much.

Before I knew it, a single teardrop fell onto the piano's key, followed by multiple other teardrops. I tried to keep my voice and my hands steady, not wanting to ruin the performance, even though the whole room had become blurry in front of my eyes.

 _I hope time hurries up_  
 _And brings you to me_  
 _I hope you will tell me just once_  
 _Things that are unbelievable_

 _Where are you?_  
 _Do you know my heart?_  
 _I miss you  
But you say I can't see you anymore  
Always like a fool  
I shout to the night sky  
Hello_

I looked up and Saeyoung was gone from his spot. Ha, I smiled through the tears. So this was how it felt to be rejected. I probably made him feel very uncomfortable. After all, what was I to him even? Just some random girl who stumbled into RFA a few days ago. Of course I meant nothing to him.

 _Goodbye now_  
 _Goodbye now_  
 _Goodbye now_  
 _Goodbye now_  
 _Goodbye_

I stood up from my seat and wiped the tears from my eyes. Some people clapped politely, but most of them were still too shocked to see me cry.

"I need to check my mascara," I mumbled, practically sprinting past Jaehee and the boys.

Jaehee entered the bathroom after me.

"That was a great performance Hyorin."

"Thank you," I blew my nose into a napkin.

"Hyorin...I don't know if this is my place to ask this," Jaehee gently put her hand on my arm. "But...did something happen between you and Luciel?"

"It doesn't matter now," I smile, "Don't worry about it."

"I can't help but notice, Hyorin, that you got along exceptionally well with him in the chatroom. I didn't necessarily enjoy the jokes, but it was fun nonetheless to see Luciel and you having so much fun."

Ha, I laughed. Was I that obvious? Did everyone know I was in love with Sae...no, I should start calling him Seven now. I have no right to keep calling him by his birth name anymore. Right. Had everyone known that I was in love with Seven? Well, if they hadn't then they did now.

"Whatever happened between you two, just talk to each other and resolve it okay?" She tapped on my shoulder. "I would hate to see either of you go, or make things awkward in the chatroom."

"Okay Jaehee, thanks for the advice."

 **Saeyoung.**

"Luciel, come out here," Zen was standing outside the bathroom stall that I was in. "Don't be ridiculous and don't make me make you come out."

"No, go away," I grunted.

"Seriously Luciel, you're even more stubborn than that trust fund kid. Can't you tell me what's going on?"

"I'm trying to take a shit here Zen, do you mind?"

Zen laughed. "Glad to see that the Luciel I know is still there."

"..."

"Did something happen between you and Hyorin?"

"No, I don't know what's up with that girl."

"Then why did you run away?"

Because if I had stayed there for a split second more, I would have broken down in tears. Because I couldn't stand to see her beautiful face so sad. Because if I had stayed there, I wouldn't have been able to control myself and would have taken her away to a faraway place and done unspeakable things to her.

"She made me uncomfortable," was all that I could manage to come up with.

"This is why Jaehee warned us against dating within the organization," Zen sighed. "Honestly, what is your deal? You should be honored that a girl like Hyorin even cares about your sorry ass. She's pretty, caring and a great person. You, on the other hand, speak the language of alien and generally cause everyone around you distress."

"Don't you think that I already knew that?"

"A ha! I knew you had feelings for Hyorin too!"

"Feelings? What are those?"

"Seven..."

"Beep beep. Does not. Compute. Feelings. Subject unknown. Error. Beep beep."

"I swear to fucking god Seven," Zen kicked down the stall door and dragged my sorry ass out. I didn't even try to fight back. "Go talk to Hyorin right now."

But before he managed to open the bathroom door, everything around me started to disappear. Zen's grasp on my arm loosened, and his voice faded away.

So you went and did it again. I tried so hard, yet your efforts are slowly breaking through. What could I have done differently? What could I possible do, to stop you from heading towards your own demise?

I opened my eyes to the darkness of the basement in my house. On my phone, RFA was bickering in the chatroom.

"Username Hyorin has entered the chatroom."


	3. Can You Hear My Heart

Let Me Be with You

Chapter 3: Can You Hear My Heart

 **Day 7**

 **Hyorin**

"I think it'd be best for you to visit Mr. Han. He's very unstable right now and I don't think he'll listen to anyone but you."

"Eh?" I slapped my hand onto my forehead. "Me? Why would he listen to me?"

"I'm sure you've already figured it out Hyorin," Jaehee calmly said. "You're a smart girl. By now we're all aware of Mr. Han's feelings for you."

I closed my eyes and furrowed my brows. It had been three weeks of this nonsense. Ever since that day I sang at the party and made a fool out of myself, I had reset the game three times and tried to fight my way into Seven's path. The first time, since I was so focused on avoding Jumin, I tried my absolute damnest to appear as a gold digger and a rude person in general to him, which resulted in the app turning back time itself for me on the 5th day. I soon came to the conclusion that I could not really avoid Jumin, so I became a little nicer to him.

To be honest, out of all the people I had dated, Jumin was a complete mystery. I had no idea how I managed to woo him the first time, since even though I tried my best to be considerate towards him, his attitude towards me was ambivalent at best. His answers were dense, mystic and vague. He did not seem to favor me more than any other member. It was completely shocking to see Jumin changing his demeanor once I'd come to his place.

But for some reasons, although I tried my best to flirt with Seven, joined him in teasing other RFA's members, praised him to the high heavens, aka everything I had done before, I always ended up having to go to Jumin's apartment to cheer him up. I tried to reset the app before going, since I knew that once I was up there in his penthouse apartment, that was it for me. It was a miracle that I managed to convince him to let me go the first time. I wasn't sure it was going to work out another time.

I was completely frustrated. The app had managed to block me for another time. It felt like the universe was completely against me ever being with Seven again.

I closed the chatroom without answering Jaehee's inquiry. I had no intention of going to Jumin's apartment again. I was too naive and too in awe of Jumin the first time, but there was no way I'd be able to endure Jumin's twisted idea of love and protection again.

My phone rang, and I picked up hastily without looking at the screen.

 **Saeyoung.**

I wasn't sure what was going on. Three weeks have passed by without Hyorin going up to Jumin's apartment. I have had to relive these seven days over and over again, watched her entering the chatroom and the RFA interrogating her over and over again.

Of course, everything that happened in this universe largely depended on Hyorins course of actions. Therefore, it had to be Hyorin who chose to redo these seven days over and over again.

At this rate, I thought to myself, she would never be able to move on. I was hoping that she would end up with Yoosung, Zen, hell even live the spinster life with Jaehee. Jumin would obviously be the best option for her, since Hyorin would be safest with him and his array of bodyguards. Saeran and Rika would never be able to touch her again, if she decided to settle down with Jumin.

It was time for me to do something. I picked up the phone and called her number.

"I'm not going!" She exploded into the phone before I could manage to say hi. "Jaehee I thought you had better sense than this! He and I are not married. What makes you think I can come up there and stay at his place alone? My mom would skin me..."

"Hey Hyorin, it's me Seven."

"Ahh..." I could imagine her face redden through her voice. Hyorin was someone who got embarrassed easily, although you would never have guessed it seeing the way she wildly flirted with us men in the RFA. "Hey Seven, what's up? Sorry I thought you were Jaehee."

"It's ok. Listen Hyorin," I switched to my business voice, the voice I use to talk to clients. "You need to go to Jumin's apartment."

"It's been so long since we talked over the phone like this," she ignored me. "How come you never call me? Zen and Yoosung calls me a lot, so does Jaehee. Even Jumin calls me once in a while."

Please, don't do this to me Hyorin, I closed my eyes and exhaled slowly.

"I'm just really busy, that's all," I tried to sound cheerful and unaffected. "Besides, why would you want to talk to me anyway? Our call could get bugged and tracked you know. It's not safe to talk to someone so dangerous as me."

"Then why do I have the feeling that you're trying to avoid me?"

"I'm not. If I was avoiding you, would I still be talking to you in the chatroom? Besides, what reason do I have to avoid you?"

Call me selfish, but it was really hard to avoid Hyorin everywhere. Part of me still wanted to talk to her, still craved interactions with her. Although I knew better than to open up and talk to her again, I was still looking forward to seeing her in the chatroom. Exchanging a few jokes and talked with her, as pathetic as it sounded, became the highlight of my day, the only thing I was looking forward to. I told myself that as long as I didn't hear her voice and talked to her face to face, it would be okay.

"I'm not going up there again," she sighed.

"When have you ever gone to Jumin's apartment?" I feigned ignorance. "Don't tell me...no way..."

"You wouldn't know," she laughed bitterly. "But my point is, I don't want to go up there."

"Why? I thought you and Jumin had a thing. I'm pretty sure Jumin wouldn't want to see anyone but you right now."

"I don't want to see Jumin," she sulked, and I could see her pouting over the phone.

"Then what do you want, dear princess? I can't be your knight in shining armor, but I could be the messenger to deliver your wish."

She giggled, and for the first time since I reset the app, I could feel the tension in me slowly disappearing. I wondered why I was so relieved to hear her laughter.

"You know what I really want?"

"Yes, your Highness?"

"I want a small wedding in the space station," she said. "Just me and my groom, somewhere no one could find us."

My heart sank, but I was able to recover quickly.

"I'm pretty sure Jumin has the budget for that. He might have the budget to bring all of RFA, his relatives and yours up there too."

"..."

"You know, I haven't told RFA this, but the apartment is not very secured right now. Yesterday I found traces of a hacker. Someone might be trying to break in there. I think it's best that you leave the apartment right now and be somewhere safe. And nowhere is safer than Jumin's apartment."

"Your place is pretty safe I heard."

"You can't come to my place. Mary Vanderwood is here, and she'd freak out if a young girl stays here. She's very old-fashioned, you know."

"Mary Vanderwood..." she pondered. "I feel like I can picture her face very clearly."

"How can you? You haven't met her yet," I assured her.

"But what about the party? I can't answer any email if I'm not in the apartment."

"Forget about the party!" I raised my voice. "How can you be thinking about the party right now? I, no, so many people are working hard to make sure that you're safe right now. You've got so many people worrying about your safety, you can't just throw away their wishes like this. Think about yourself for a little bit please!"

Silence ensued. I covered the phone and let out a string of swear words that would make Zen blush.

"You know perfectly well why I don't want to go to Jumin's apartment, right Seven?" Hyorin said gently when I picked up the phone again. "It's because I have feelings for you."

"I did not know that."

"Yeah, so. There it is."

"I can't return your feelings."

"Why? Is there someone else you like?" Her voice started to tremble.

"There isn't. But you can't be involved with someone like me Hyorin."

"Why? Why do you keep saying that?" She cried into the phone. "I know you want to get closer to someone. You joke about your dangerous job, and you joke about being a cockroach, but I don't think you were joking at all. I know you really meant it. Do you remember the dream you told me about being kittens? I think you want people to know you Seven, even though you keep denying it. I think you must be so lonely all this time, and it makes me feel so sad."

"..."

"I just wish, Seven, that you wouldn't try to take so many responsibilities upon yourself. Let me, uhm, us help. I...we all care about you, and I, I mean we would hate to see you so burdened," she stammered.

"You have a kind heart Hyorin. But that's just how I am. Being involved with me will bring you nothing but trouble, I mean it."

"God," she exhaled into the phone. "We've been there before. It's so frustrating to go through this all over again."

I decided to ignore her statements.

"Before I called you, I told Jaehee the address of the apartment," I announced coldly. "So the driver should be there to pick you up in 3...2...1."

I heard the sound of a knock on the door.

"Go to Jumin, and be safe Hyorin. That is my last wish to you. I'm sorry I couldn't fulfill your wish."

"Seven, but..."

"Just go!" I yelled at her. "Are you lighthearted or are you just dense?! I went through all this trouble to make sure you're secure and you don't even care!"

"..."

"Don't you get it? I don't want to be with you. I have no reason to want to be with someone so dense and selfish."

"Seven..."

"I tried to be nice to you but you wouldn't listen. You're so persistent Hyorin. But now you know how I feel."

"Okay," I could hear her voice trembling. "I'm sorry...That I bothered you so much...all this time."

"That's good."

"I'm in the car right now."

"Good."

"Take care, alright? Don't eat Honey Buddha Chips all the time. Make your maid cook proper meals for you."

"..."

"Goodbye, Saeyoung."

 **Hyorin**

"Jumin..." I tried to put on a cheerful face when I saw his back. "I'm here Jumin."

"Hyorin," He turned around and his face was full of surprise. "This is...so sudden."

He strode across the living room with those impossibly long legs and took me in his arms. "Seeing you like this in person really makes me happy."

"Really?" My voice started to tremble. "You are happy to see me?"

"Of course," he stroked my hair. "Your presence is calming me down so much right now."

For some reasons unknown to me, I started bursting into tears. Everything was wrong. It was not supposed to turn out like this. Did I, really annoy Seven that much? Did he really hate me that much? I really was so oblivious. I only cared about how I felt and didn't stop to think whether Seven would return these feelings that I had. I didn't even think about how Jumin must have felt, with all the drama in his family. I was truly a terrible person.

"I'm so sorry," I tried to gasp for air. "I came here to cheer you up, but I ended up crying instead."

"There there," Jumin patted my back with the sensitivity of a cat. "Hyorin, what happened? Why are you crying?"

"Nothing, I was just so relieved to see you that's all," I smiled and collapsed into his familiar embrace.

 **Jumin**

"Assistant Kang."

"Yes, . How is Hyorin?"

"She's fine right now, sleeping like an angel on my bed. She stopped crying awhile ago and was exhausted, so I put her to bed."

"I see, that's good then."

"Assistant Kang."

"Yes, Mr. Han?"

"I'm...I'm not very good when it comes to things like this, so I'm going to ask for your advice."

"My advice?"

"Yes, since...you're a woman."

"I see that you're finally aware of the fact," I could feel her sarcasm seeping through the phone, but I wouldn't let it get to me.

"Hyorin wouldn't tell me why she was crying. I was wondering if you'd have any idea."

"I really have no idea, Mr. Han."

"But she seemed so cheerful a moment ago in the chatroom. What happened before she came here? Who spoke to her last?"

"Well," Jaehee was hesistating. "I called her to convince her to go to your apartment. Right after that, Seven called me to tell me the address of the apartment and told me to have Mr. Kim drive there."

"I see. Could you send Mr. Kim up here?"

"Certainly."

"Mr. Kim, how are you doing?"

"I'm fine young master. What do you want to see me about?"

"The girl that you drove here..."

"Yes?"

"How was she when you saw her?"

"Hmmm, I don't remember very well, but I remember that she was on the phone."

"Do you know who she was talking to?"

"I can't remember the name."

"Was it Seven?"

"No, it was a normal sounding Korean name. She was a weird one though, crying about Honey Buddha chips for some reasons."

"I see...Thank you Mr. Kim. You can go now."

"Goodbye young master."

I sighed. So she was talking to Seven, although I had no idea why another name would come up in their conversation. That bastard, I wanted to make him pay for hurting Hyorin. Whatever he said, it must have been malicious for her to cry for hours like that.

"You're up already Hyorin?"

I came back into the room to find Elizabeth 3rd curling up in her lap. Hyorin was absentmindedly scratching Elizabeth 3rd's head and chin. I rushed to their side, ready to put Elizabeth 3rd back into the cage.

"Leave her be," Hyorin waved her hand at me. "If you keep her locked up like that, she'll get frustrated and try to escape when you let her out."

"No she won't. Elizabeth 3rd would never do that to me."

"Trust me, she will," Hyorin glared at me. "Then it'll be a huge mess and Jaehee would have to work even more," there's a sharp and bitter tone in the way she talked. She must still be upset a lot.

"I suppose you're right. Elizabeth 3rd seems to like you a lot," I sat down next to her. "She doesn't get comfortable with a lot of people."

"I'm sorry for coming here and not being to console you," she sighed. "How is everything going?"

"Worry about yourself first Hyorin," I put a hand on her shoulder. "I heard about the apartment."

"The apartment?" She looked confused.

"Seven explained to us all about the bomb. To be honest, I'm not that surprised."

"Oh...that. Yoosung must be so shocked."

"Certainly. But I must say...The Rika that I knew, it wouldn't be too far-fetched to think she would do something like this."

"What was Rika really like?" For some reasons, Hyorin became interested.

"She was very strong willed. She had great ambitions and ideals about a peaceful world. Some very radical ideas."

"Is that so?"

"Yeah, she told me that she wanted to create a world where no one would ever suffer."

Hyorin's face lighted up for a moment, as though she had come to a revelation.

"I'd like to hear what's in that pretty head of yours," I tapped her forehead.

"Oh no you don't," she smiled but her eyes were sad. "Well then," she clasp her hands together. "Now that I'm here, you should really go to work Jumin. I'll take care of Elizabeth 3rd and make sure that no one touches her."

I hesitated. Hyorin just got here, and it might be selfish of me, but I wanted to spend as much time as possible with her, before she had to go back to Rika's apartment.

"Just go Jumin," she reached out and touched my hand. "I'd still be here when you come home. I won't go anywhere."

"I...I see," I stammered. It's crazy, how could she understand me so well even though we've only known each other for a couple days. The way she just knew what I was insecure about, and immediately calmed my mind. "If you don't mind spending the night here. I will sleep on the couch, of course."

Hyorin laughed. "Would you rather we share the bed instead?"

I fell backwards, my face suddenly felt hot. "Hyorin, wh...what are you saying?"

"Haha, it's so fun to tease you Jumin, no wonder Seven does it all the time," she was laughing so hard tears were coming out her eyes. Or at least that's what it seemed like at first. Soon enough her laughter transitioned into little gasps for air. I pulled her into my arms, the way the male lead in soap operas was supposed to do every time the female lead cried in front of him.

"There, there," I awkwardly patted her back. How can someone so tiny have so much water in their body.

"Jumin, you're so nice," she wiped her tears. "Don't be so nice to me, it makes it hard for me to turn you away."

"I'm just doing what I want to, is that wrong?"

"It's not, but it makes me feel guilty."

"Why?"

"Because the person I have feelings for isn't you."

"I know, you have feelings for Seven." I sighed. I knew from the start that she favored Seven over me, for reasons unfathomable to me. But I couldn't help feeling the way I do. Since Rika died, Hyorin was the only person I felt like I could talk to. She didn't treat me differently because I was a trust fund kid, she didn't care about my wealth. She listened to me and encouraged me. Hyorin's arrival made me aware of how lonely I had become over the past 2 years, after Rika's death and V being around less and less.

"You know?" her eyes widened. "Was I that obvious?"

"Everyone knows."

Hyorin turned her face away, her ears reddened. "I'm so embarrassed right now."

"I'm not going to give up Hyorin," I stood up from the bed and fixed my tie. "I'm going to win your heart."

"..."

"I don't believe that I can lose to Seven. That's simply ridiculous."

"Jumin...that's not how feelings work. Anyway, go now, or Jaehee is gonna be pissed."

"Alright. Just stay here. There's a mall, a gym and various shops in this building. You won't be bored."

"I know."

"Then excuse me, I have to go now. Try not to cry anymore."


End file.
